According to the US Fire Administration, residential building fires number 350 thousand per year, and nearly 3,000 Americans, unfortunately, lose their lives. Smoke alarms have long been known to be effective early warning systems that alert residents to potential dangers and give them time to reach safety before fires get out of control. However, these alarms are only effective when they are positioned in the correct areas and in good working condition. If you are unsure if your home’s safety is up to standard, keep reading to find out the best ways to ensure your family is protected.
Simple and Effective
Without getting into technical details about how smoke alarms work, you should know that deaths from fires in residential homes with working smoke alarms are 55 percent lower than those without working smoke alarms. With potential improvements to safety at such a high degree, there is no reason to live in a home without properly functioning and maintained smoke alarms.
Smoke alarms are a small investment, with most high-end models still costing less than 25 dollars. With a life span of roughly ten years, and more recent models coming standard with a ten-year, permanently charged battery, your overall monetary investment can be negligible.
How Many Smoke Alarms Do You Need?
How many devices you need directly relates to how many rooms, levels, and sleeping areas are in your house. The US Fire Administration recommends alarms for each of the following areas:
- Inside each bedroom and sleeping area
- Directly outside the door of a bedroom or sleeping area
- On each floor of your house, including basements
There are very few places where a smoke alarm could not be helpful, namely nearby a kitchen or heating vent. While false alarms don’t present any immediate issues besides annoyance, it is essential for the safety of your family that smoke alarms are taken seriously. If false alarms are commonplace, a family member might ignore a distant alarm and lose precious seconds that help them escape from a fire disaster.
Ultimately, more smoke alarms mean a faster reaction to any fire and more alarms that can warn you of impending danger. In addition, current fire safety standards recommend a series of interconnected fire alarms that alert and trigger all other alarms connected to the system. This is especially important for large houses or properties with detached areas like a garage or shed. Fires in these detached buildings can spread quickly, but a fire alarm that can only be heard outside isn’t helpful if you are sound asleep in bed.
We mentioned how affordable smoke alarms can be and how new technology makes maintaining them very simple. However, you should still conduct monthly tests on your alarms to ensure they are in working order. Most models have a clearly-labeled ‘test’ button for this purpose. Even though the homeowner plays an important role in maintaining these devices, electricians should still install new smoke alarms, especially if they are newer models that interconnect with other alarms in the house. Having an electrician professionally install all alarms gives you the peace of mind that your family is always safe and protected.
Smoke alarms help alert you to dangers, but proper electrical maintenance and upgrades are another integral part of keeping your house and family safe from fires. Old wirings and improperly maintained electrical systems are some of the most common fire dangers behind cooking mistakes.
If you want to upgrade your alarms or conduct a home electrical audit that helps identify potential fire hazards, contact Promise Electric today. Our team has served the Sarasota area for decades and is a trusted partner for many residents and businesses.
